Ten thousand years ago, on the world of Uldan, a number of events over the span of a few centuries triggered a chain reaction of calamities, and the world was thrown into unparalleled chaos and destruction. Wars broke across the globe, few at first, but more and more until eventually the world was engulfed in unending warfare. As their worshippers were being slaughtered the Gods themselves forsook their home realms and strode forth onto Uldan to stop the tide of destruction. Unfortunately, this only exacerbated the situation and made things even worse as old grudges suddenly came to the fore and the gods themselves clashed on the mortal plane. Powerful magic raged unchecked, tearing open great portal rifts in the northern wastelands of Uldan, giving planar beings free access to the material plane. Infernal hordes spewed forth into Uldan bent on conquest, only to be met by celestial hosts descending from the skies and clouds. The destruction escalated steadily and no one, not mortal nor planar or divine being, seemed ready or capable to stop it.

Gruumsh finally settled the old score with Corellon Larethian, taking the elf-god’s head as he led a greenskin host against an elven army, which broke upon seeing their Lord slain before them. Gruumsh did not long celebrate his victory, as the mighty hammer of Moradin crushed his chest when the dwarves rushed to the aid of the elves. The Spider Queen took her revenge on the surface elves, and the giant gods crushed dwarves and orcs alike in their rampages. Pelor fought against Nerull and Vecna, and Heironeous strode forth to fight against anyone (be it god, demon or mortal), and Hextor and St. Cuthbert rallied their followers in opposition to each other. On and on across the world the gods battled as the mortals did, dying as mortals did now that they had become tied to this mortal plane, as all connected planes had become due to the storm of destruction and magic unleashed on the world.

The god of Storms, the Lord of Change and Chaos, was the only one to perceive what the ultimate end must be for the world of Uldan. As the death and destruction raged he made plans to salvage what he could of his own existence, as he accepted that death was only a different kind of change. He selected one of the oldest and mightiest of his followers, a great beast of his kind, a dragon ogre shaggoth called Kharnak the Skullcrusher, as his vessel of potential salvation.

Possessing a powerfully muscled humanoid upper body with a horned head and the scaly lower body of a dragon with four powerful legs, dragon ogres embodied the elemental strength, power and chaotic nature of the storm. Both brutishly powerful and elegantly draconic in appearance, with typically dark scale colors, they have the natural presence of their size with the strength and endurance of the mountains themselves. Small horns sprout from the sides of their heads which curl and grown in length as they age. They had an affinity for lightning and revelled in the thunder and chaos of natural thunderstorms, chasing lightning as it arcs across the skies. They were powerful warriors with a quicksilver temperament, revering strength above all, always willing to fight and prone to bouts of anger or rage when challenged physically. Dragon ogres grow larger in size and increase in power as they age and the eldest of them become known as 'Shaggoth', a title of respect and sign of great survival capability, which could reach truly titanic proportions and were revered by younger dragon ogres. Dragon ogres were not immortal, but could live for many centuries with long lifespans similar to that of elven races, though their chaotic and combative nature tended to prevent this.

As things escalated, mortals dwindled into extinction and the gods themselves died in droves, the rifts of magic expanded unchecked, and the world could no longer stand the strain. First were minor earthquakes and floods, then volcanic eruptions, then earthquakes of such intensity that mountains trembled and cracked and whole towns were flattened. As the world was torn apart, the planes linked to its existence also shattered, and there was no longer any chance to stop the end of the world and the planes connected to it. With not a moment to spare, the Lord of Storms plucked Kharnak from the world, took the last spark of his greatly diminished power and embedded it deep within the shaggoth, and then hurled Kharnak across time and space to a different material plane where he hoped his power could live on so he could be reborn anew.

However, Kharnak arrived on the plane of Faerun, and the gods with aspects of storm, change or chaos (such as Talos, Teylas, Lolth, Ragarra, and Erevan Ilesere) all marked his impact high in the snow-covered mountains of the northern polar icecap as they detected the seed of something attuned to their aspect. Since they did not perceive an immediate threat they were content to let whatever it was lay there, apparently dormant, buried in the crater high in the snowy wastes of the north. Kharnak slumbered, cocooned in the last remnants of the magical power that sent him here and safe from harm. As he slept, though, the magic slowly meshed with his physical being, enhancing his already powerful body greatly as it slowly interacted with this new world. The seed of the Lord of Change that lay entombed within settled deep inside him, dormant, hidden and safe from harm. He slept for just over a century while that seed settled and his protective cocoon transformed him in a guardian, and awoke remembering both the death of the Uldan and knowing how he had been saved and why, and that he had been given the power to see his destiny fulfilled. He knew that eventually the seed would burst forth from him to give birth to a new Lord of Storms at some point (who would work to prevent what destroyed the Old World from happening to this new one) and that he would once again revert to being what he once was when that momentous event happened. But, first, he would have to survive in this strange new world, so he set out to carefully explore this new world of Faerun and perform the greater purpose ahead of him.

In the decades he has been awake on Faerun since, he has traversed much of the northern mountain ranges and icy tundra. He has by no means explored the whole world, and is eager to discover more, but always being careful not to make too many enemies. However, the fact he is the only one of his kind in the world, and the nature of his augmented self, enemies seem to naturally be drawn to him. Indeed, he is certain that the divine beings of this plane whose aspect he shares have set their agents against him to prevent the ascension of his spark, and he secretly wonders if he may have to find a way to a different material plane. Not all folk he encountered have reacted as negatively to him, though, and has made a few friends in his travels. He has come to understand that he may need allies if he is to succeed in his mission, and that this world is not the same as Uhldan was, that war and survival is not the every-day existence of every living being.

Typical shaggoth

Possessing a powerfully muscled humanoid upper body with a horned head and the scaly lower body of a dragon with four powerful legs, Kharnak is a mountain of muscle, armored in thick scales, with clawed feet, and wields a massive two-handed hammer. He stands nearly ten feet high at the shoulder and is just short of a dozen feel in length to the tip of his tail. His bulging musculature is sharply defined, making his strength and physical might readily apparently. Two curved horns, about three feet long, sprout from his temple to jut out from beside his strong square jaw. His eyes are black, and a long mane of black hair, slowly going greyish-white at the tips, flows down his spine to his waist. His scaled hide is thick and scarred in many places; the scales are a dark forest green in color and have dulled with age. When his temper is engaged his eyes seem to shine with flashes of blue sparks, almost like lightning, and his body seems to physically swell with might as his muscles bulge even larger. He was one of the oldest dragon ogres to live in the Old World and is the only one of his kind in Faerun. He is the embodiment of the storm, fury and chaos in all its glory, more so now than ever before due to his transformation into a guardian for the divine spark within him.

Always the first to laugh at thunder and dance in a thunderstorm, or roar out a challenge in the face of the enemy, Kharnak is an enigma to everyone who meets him. Never one to back down from a fight, he is also always willing to learn about things he has no knowledge of, question the state of things around him, and is just as likely stop and ask directions from a traveller as he is to run down an orc for being in the way when he is galloping across the plains. After all, why should he stop just because the orc is in his way?

When not exulting in strength of arms, Kharnak tends to revel in galloping freely in severe thunderstorms, rejoicing in the impact of wind-driven rain against his thick hide, giving an answering roar whenever thunder peals across the stormy skies, and chasing the lighting as it arcs across the heavens. He is a creature of the untamed wild, roaming the mountains with the recklessness of the winds or a storm, always preferring the wild to civilized dwellings.

He favors fighting monsters over the more civilized of races, and he has learned the hard way that not every creature he encounters is a threat, that sometimes it is better to speak than strike, and learned the value of friendship. He has made few true friends, always aware of his guardianship and the harm he may bring to others by association; but he is also aware of the value of allies and the term ‘strength in numbers’.

He was spirited away to preserve the essence of the Lord of Storms from Uldan by becoming the very thing he is tasked to preserve. As the spark within him has made him stronger and more powerful, he knows enemies will be drawn to him by that very same thing. His goal is to survive until the mantle of the Lord of Storms can be reborn again and the memory of the Old World will endure.

GM Note: Kharnak does not know that it is he that will be reborn as the new god, not the spark; even the plans of gods can go awry, and the Weave of Toril has caused the divine spark to become part of him instead.

What with your char's focus upon conquests, he could have very likely hired/encountered The Fixer (my char) at some point.

Additionally, as a Planar Shepherd attuned to The Abyss (which, if I'm not mistaken, is the consummate rival plane to The Hells, and by extention Asmo), and certainly capable of travelling to the Hells and back, there could be some even deeper things at play here.

I think that is completely likely, that would also attune you against hell with the whole endless war between the abyss and hell. Valjek is specifically trying to worm his way out of debt with Amadeus, and would not hesitate to hire you, and even offer you a place at his citadel if you proved valuable and needed a base. He is also direct enemies of st. cuthbert and vecna, or followers of those two. He can also enchant items for you and loan you a flying mount.

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Some may question your right to destroy ten billion people. Those who understand realize that you have no right to let them live!

The Items may be of use, although Riverheart (The Fixer's birth name) has just about everything he needs now thanks to squandering 249,650 GP entirely on items and the combining of items (and making one buffing spell permanent).

As for a mount...his companion at this time is a Horrid Elephant, already gargantuan, and he has plenty of means of flying.

If Valjek wants complete freedom, for something of that level of power Fix would not want mere payment. He would want a full alliance of equals.

by escaping, I mean he plans to make himself a lich so he will never die, and hide his phylactary somewhere where no one will ever find it. He is also searching for the hand and eye of Vecna, so He would very likely hire you to help him with the searching when he goes out. He can only take his bride with him into buildings, and she can only function normally at night. So having a very competent ally with him(which he would consider you an equal in power, if not in stature) to help him clear ruins or temples of Vecna as he scours dungeons for them.

I am not sure what you mean by alliance of equals, but if you worked with/for him, he would lend his support to you in turn. He can bring a literal small army to bare if you needed help, with competent battlefield commanders, a zombie dragon, and a zombie chimera.

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Some may question your right to destroy ten billion people. Those who understand realize that you have no right to let them live!

That was more or less what I meant. Aka that Riverheart wouldn't like to be thought of as just some lackey hired to help, but a true ally.

Also, you just had to get the height joke in there... :P

That said, sounds good enough. I'm working on my char sheet (and actual IRL) work right now and I'll be online for a bit, so I suppose we could work out what point in time this interaction would have first taken place -- is this a new contract or old one, etc. -- and under what circumstances.

Worn in the headslot by a character with an animal companion (not the companion).

While wearing this Headband, for purposes of the Animal Companion ability the wearer is treated as if they are four levels higher in their base class that provides this ability (Ranger, Druid, etc.). This allows you to progress or acquire a single companion accordingly as if you were that level. This does not affect your ability to command your companion, use wild empathy, or to train your companion. Once this headband is used with a specific companion, it cannot be used with another companion. If the wearer wishes to acquire a new companion, they must obtain a new headband.

***If this cost seems too low, increasing it to 50,000 GP (and the crafting calcs accordingly) would be fine as well.

Sorry I am going to say no to this item because its going beyond the limits of what your animal companion is supposed to be. I see no reason to let your animal companion be a companion for a 19th level druid at 15th level for 50,000gp. There is no item that gives 4 levels that I know of so no on this.

Also wondering how you got such a high wisdom? Where is your math on this?